India’s Pluralism Demonstrates How Moral Integrity and Diversity Can Co exist; Global Ethics Should Therefore Prioritize Ethical Translation and In ter-Civilizational Dialogue Over Monolithic Restorations of Moral Tradition
Abstract:
1. Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s metaphor of the “Christian smoothie” — representing a morally blended Western civiliza tion losing coherence through excessive secularization and multicultural relativism — raises fundamental questions about civilizational integrity and moral sources. 2. This paper expands on her argument through an Indian lens, engaging comparative philosophy, postcolo nial theory, and moral sociology. 3. It explores whether pluralistic societies like India, grounded in dialogical and civilizational diversity, can provide an alternative model of moral coherence without theological uniformity. 4. Drawing on Amartya Sen, Rajeev Bhargava, Charles Taylor, and Raimon Panikkar, the paper argues that the integrity of a moral civilization lies not in preserving purity but in cultivating reflexive pluralism — a capacity for ethical adaptability and dialogical coexistence. 5. The “Indian scenario” thus offers a living counterpoint to the Western anxiety over civilizational dilution, suggesting that hybridity can sustain, rather than dissolve, moral coherence.
